Minnesota wine with Austrian and Hungarian roots
A family vineyard on Highway 15, 7 miles south of Kimball. Come taste wines named for an Austrian town, a Hungarian sunset and the ship the Millners sailed on in 1882, poured by the family itself.
The wine list, translated
Most of our wines carry a German or Hungarian name: a place, a person or a feeling from the family story. A few are just jokes. Here is what each one means and what's in the glass.
Dry
Freizeit
$18.99German for “free time”
Seyval Blanc. A light, dry white, not unlike Pinot Grigio. Serve chilled.
Drága
$21.99Hungarian, roughly “precious”
Marquette, twelve months in mostly Hungarian oak. Our fullest-bodied dry red, unfiltered.
Neuhaus
$18.99The family's town of origin in Austria
Marquette without the barrel: crisper, more fruit. Good with pork, or a schnitzel.
Goes Well With Pot Roast
$17.99Exactly what it says
An off-dry blend of cold-climate reds with soft tannins.
Off-dry & semi-sweet
What The Foch
$18.99A red for people who don't like heavy reds
Black cherry and blackberry, no oak, made with a white-wine yeast.
Mein Onkel
$18.99German for “my uncle”
For Dick Millner, full of life and laughter, who passed away in 2010. Sabrevois with a touch of Marquette and Frontenac.
Naplemente
$18.99Hungarian for “sunset”
A Frontenac Gris rosé with apricot and berry, more body than most rosés. Serve chilled.
Salier
$19.99The ship the family sailed to America on in 1882
Free-run Frontenac Gris: apricot, grapefruit and citrus, no oak.
Schnickelfritz
$19.99Rascal, troublemaker
Brianna, semi-sweet with a slightly tart finish. Enjoy around your favorite troublemakers.
Sweet
Nordsüss
$16.99German for “northern sweet”
Our sweetest red, light and fruity, the grape juice you remember from childhood.
Gemütlichkeit
$20.99German for “good times” (try saying it)
Prairie Star left sweet: apple, mango, pineapple and melon.
Little Iza
$22.99Named for Izabella, Jon and Anna's daughter
100% La Crescent, sweet but balanced by acidity.
Governor's Cup 2013, Best Wine Made in Minnesota
Specialty
Mullner Weiss
$20.99“Millner white”: Müllner was the family name in Austria
Sweet, fruit-forward Seyval Blanc: apple, peach and melon.
Sotan (3 pounds)
$26.99Rated by the pounds of raisins in a gallon of wine
A dessert wine to drink within 5 to 10 years.
We make more than 15 labels, ciders included, and our wines have won medals at the International Cold Climate Wine Competition. Taste them at the bar, or order a case shipped anywhere in the continental US.
Tastings & something to eat
Pull up a stool at the bar and taste your way from dry to sweet. For groups of 9 or more, please call ahead.
- Wine flight6 samples of your choice$15.00
- Single taste at the bar$2.50
- Every wine on the list$20.00
From the kitchen
- Meat & cheese plateSmoked Gouda, sharp Cheddar, Hungarian Gyulai sausage, smoked pork loin, crackers$17.95
- Fruit & cheese plateBrie, Havarti, extra sharp Cheddar, seasonal fruit, crackers$17.95
- Cheese pizza12 inch$12.00
- Hungarian-style pizza12 inch, Gyulai sausage, smoked pork loin, pepper, red onion$17.99
Ride through the vines on the trolley
From May to October our vintage tractor pulls the trolley down the vineyard rows. You see the grapes up close, and we explain how a vineyard grows in Minnesota. That part takes about an hour. Then step into the winery to see how the wine is made.
- Riding vineyard tourper person, about an hour$15.00
- Winery tour$15.00
- Both tourstax included$25.00
Tours are for groups of 10 or more, by reservation. Email us to book a tour.
Müllner in Austria, Millner in Minnesota
Franz Müllner came from Neuhaus, Austria, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, around 1880. His wife Annastazia followed with the children in 1882, on the ship Salier. In America the name became Millner. Their son Matt married Theresea Gruber, and soon he and his brothers-in-law were making wine, whiskey and more; there are good stories from the Prohibition years.
Every generation since has kept the tradition, and in 2005 the family decided to take it to commercial scale. The first vines went in in 2006, and by 2009 there were nine acres and about 5,000 vines: Frontenac, Frontenac Gris, Marquette, Brianna, Prairie Star, Valiant, Kay Gray and Sabrevois, all bred by Elmer Swenson or the University of Minnesota. Jon makes some wines in traditional Austrian or Hungarian styles; the Frontenac wines are Minnesota originals.
“We're a family of wine makers descending from the heart of Europe, making wine in the heart of Minnesota.”
- Don Millner
Runs the business day to day, and is probably the keenest singer of the Schnitzelbank. - Mary Millner
The gift shop, the holiday decorating, the flower gardens and the events. - Jon Millner
Don and Mary's son. Manages the vineyard and makes the wine. - Annamaria Millner
Jon's wife, an agricultural engineer from Hungary. Vineyard, bar, production and events.
Weddings and parties at the vineyard
Weddings, Christmas parties, birthdays, anniversaries. Say your vows under the pergola, take the photos between the vines, and dance in the pavilion.
- Pavilion
- Seats 200 guests
- Indoor dining area
- Seats 100 guests (seasonal)
- Rental
- $2,000 plus 6.875% use tax, 11am to midnight, tables, chairs and linens included
- Bar
- Our bartenders at no charge; $1,500 bar minimum. Wine, beer, soda and mixed drinks
During opening hours the store stays open to the public. No outside alcohol, please.
This season at the winery
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Nov27Fri
Black Friday at the winery
Skip the crowds and the lines. Save 20% on 6 to 11 bottles and 30% on 12. Live music from 1 to 4pm, and one free glass of our Glühwein per guest.
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Dec4Fri
Ladies' Night Out
4:30 to 8pm. Local vendors and holiday gifts, live music, games and prizes. Every $10 you spend earns a raffle ticket.
Read our current newsletter for everything else that's on.
Find us on Highway 15
Millner Heritage Winery & Cidery32025 State Hwy. 15
Kimball, MN 55353
7 miles south of Kimball, or 9 miles north of Dassel, on MN State Hwy. 15.
Hours
- Thursday
- 11am – 6pm
- Friday
- 11am – 7pm
- Saturday
- 11am – 7pm
- Sunday
- 11am – 6pm
Get in touch
320-398-2081 (we answer during opening hours)
millnerheritagewinery@gmail.com
Events: events.millnerheritagewinery@gmail.com
Order a case
A case is 12 bottles, any mix of labels, at list price, shipped by UPS in the continental US for $36. Email your name, shipping address, phone and the labels you'd like to donmillner@gmail.com and we'll call you to finish the order. Ciders are sold at the winery only.